Fantasy Football 2017 Team Preview: Pittsburgh Steelers
This is the 2017 fantasy preview of the Pittsburgh Steelers. In this preview I will provide the Must-Own players, Sleepers, and Longshot players with upside very deep in drafts.
Must-own players are those who should be owned by someone in any league. Handcuff RBs can qualify, as they are often very important to a fantasy team over the full schedule. Sleepers are secondary players that you may find on the waiver wire at some point in the year, or may go undrafted in shallower auction-style leagues. The Longshots are players with microscopic ADP, who are being drafted at the very end of drafts, or more likely not drafted at all.
All ADP data is courtesy of FantasyPros.com.
**I will list all kickers, but I cannot give analysis on them. Sorry :-/
MUST OWNS
Le’Veon Bell, RB (ADP: 2): Bell is a fine pick at No. 1 overall if you so please, as he is a comparable – if not superior – talent to David Johnson. Bell will lead the Steelers in touches, score a ton of touchdowns, and catch upward of 70 passes. The only downside to Bell is the risk of him not being on the field. Bell has dealt with injury issues in the past, and he skipped all of training camp this offseason. He also carries suspension risk, as his next infraction might lead him to be banned for an entire season. With that said, it’s difficult to find a player who contributes across so many categories.
Antonio Brown, WR (ADP: 3): Brown is the best receiver in football, and has been for a few years. He is not quite the athletic marvel that Odell Beckham is, or the physical beast that Julio Jones is, but no one at the position has mastered the craft like Brown. In 2016 he caught 106 passes for 1,284 yards and 10 touchdowns, and that somehow represented a sizable step back for him from the previous two years. You’re silly to take any WR ahead of him, and I would not laugh if anyone decided to pick Brown first overall.
Martavis Bryant, WR (ADP: 56): It’s been awhile since we’ve seen Martavis Bryant in action, but before his year-long suspension Bryant was making his case as one of the most spectacular receivers in football. In Bryant’s first two seasons he averaged 21.1 and 15.3 yards per reception and scored at eight and six touchdowns, respectively, despite topping out at 11 games played. Bryant is going to score touchdowns in this high-octane offense, but it’s important to not let the hype go overboard. He will not be a target hound, due to his role as a downfield threat and the presence of Brown and Bell. Second, he carries extremely high risk of being lost to suspension, as well as injury. That’s why this ADP is appropriate, even if he has a great chance to blow it away.
Defense/Special Teams (ADP: 174): The Steelers D has plenty of exciting players on it, but the reason for them being a must-own is a Week 1 matchup vs. DeShone Kizer and the Browns. They will likely turn Cleveland over multiple times, and possibly score a TD. In addition to that, they offer Antonio Brown as a punt returner. Can’t beat that.
SLEEPERS
Ben Roethlisberger, QB (ADP: 93): Big Ben is the 12th QB off the board, and he’s taken some dings from experts. Sadly, I tend to agree. Big Ben is capable of putting up gaudy numbers, but he has warts. Roethlisberger has missed games in back-to-back seasons, and his 4,952-yard season in 2014 is looking like an extreme outlier in comparison to his normal production. Big Ben is a nice QB to pick up and pair with Andrew Luck, who will miss some early games, or as a safety net for a running QB like Cam Newton. Drafting him to start every week, however, is probably unwise.
LONGSHOTS
James Conner, RB (ADP: 193): Conner is talented, but he’s a longshot and not a sleeper because he won’t contribute much at all without an injury to Bell. Conner is a high-end handcuff because of this offense, but he’s nothing more than a pure handcuff. If the rookie out of Pitt gets his number called this year, however, he’ll have RB2 upside right out of the gate.
Vance McDonald, TE (ADP: 240): McDonald was a boom-or-bust sleeper as a 49er, but now he’s been freed from the Bay Area prison and released into the Steelers’ offense. He arrived late so the production won’t come right away, but he is talented enough to be a must-start as the 2017 season wears on. Keep your eyes peeled for him.
Eli Rogers, WR (ADP: 336): Rogers is the third wide receiver on the Steelers depth chart, and this offense is so high-scoring that he warrants fantasy attention. He’s also the next in line if the injury bug bites Bryant, and if he landed in the WR2 role Rogers would become a weekly FLEX for someone.
KICKER
Chris Boswell.